


Thanks, Dad.

by weblesstherains



Series: The Incredible Adventures of One Tony Stark and His Favorite Spider-Kid [2]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: ALL THE GOOD STUFF, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Howard Stark's Bad Parenting, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Calls Tony Stark "Dad", Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker is a Little Shit, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Feels, Tony Stark Has Issues, also just no one knows i write this stuff lmao, and when i say that I mean, no beta we die like men and all that, peter's kinda oblivious to tony's feelings bc tony's emotionally constipated as fuck, starkers go away please, they figure it out though they're smart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-18
Updated: 2021-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-27 00:15:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,746
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30114243
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/weblesstherains/pseuds/weblesstherains
Summary: “Cool. Thanks, dad.”Tony stares, his heart jumping in his chest. What?Peter freezes, seeming to have realized what he’d said.“What did you just call me?”--Peter slips up and calls Tony 'dad' in the lab one day. Discussions ensue.(can you tell I'm absolute shit at summaries?)--Follow-up to the first story in the series. This can be read as a standalone, but there are references to things that happened in the first story, so it's probably best if you read that one first.--TW for referenced past child abuse, but not anything intense or graphic.
Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: The Incredible Adventures of One Tony Stark and His Favorite Spider-Kid [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2216001
Comments: 16
Kudos: 298





	Thanks, Dad.

**Author's Note:**

> I decided to turn this into a series! When I decided to write more I wanted to write in the same universe, so... yeah. Enjoy!

“And then put that… right here, kid.” 

Tony and Peter are sitting at one of the worktables in his lab, bent over a half-assembled Iron Man suit. Tony, focused on his own repairs, absentmindedly gestures at the correct placement of the wire, then turns back to his work, sticking a screw between his teeth as he pulls at the chestplate. 

“Okay, and then… this goes here?”

Tony glances over, taking the screw from between his teeth. “Yep, you got it.”

“Cool. Thanks, dad.”

Tony stares, his heart jumping in his chest.  _ What?  _

Peter freezes, seeming to have realized what he’d said.

“What did you just call me?”

Peter doesn’t respond.

Tony frowns. “Peter.”

Peter glances off to the side, biting his lip and fidgeting with the hem of his sleeve. 

Tony steps closer. “Pete, look at me.”

Peter doesn’t acknowledge his request, looking like he’d rather be anywhere but here. 

“I’m sorry,” he whispers, his voice barely audible, “I’m sorry I said that, it was an accident. I can-- I’ll just, um, leave, sir.”

Tony wants to kick himself for his reaction. Not a minute ago Peter had called him dad, and now they’re back to sir. He can practically see Peter closing himself off.

“Kid, hey, wait.”

Peter ignores him, his movements jerky and panicked as he stands up and backs away.

“ _ Roo. _ ”

This time Peter pauses. Tony knows that he loves that nickname, even if he’s only used it a select few times. It was too soft, too kind and not teasing enough for Tony to feel comfortable with it. He steps forward, reaching out a hand that lingers for a second, unsure, before cupping Peter’s cheek. This is insanely far out of his comfort zone, but something about the expression on Peter’s face overrides the discomfort. He opens his mouth to speak, then closes it again. Peter had called him  _ dad.  _ Months ago, Peter had admitted to seeing him as a sort of father-figure, but even then he hadn’t even used the word father. And they hadn’t spoken about it since. 

But still, Tony realizes, tentative father-figure is different from father. From calling him  _ dad.  _ Tony thought the title would elicit some kind of negative feeling, but the giddy jump he’d gotten in his stomach when Peter had called him that was far from it. 

“It’s okay,” he finds himself responding. 

Peter actually glances up this time, frowning. 

Tony pauses and takes a breath. “You can call me that if you want to.” The words are quiet, rushed, and Tony almost wishes that Peter hadn’t heard the hushed admission.

Peter blinks, looking shocked. “You-- I-- um…  _ what _ ?”

Oh, shit. Had he misread the situation? Maybe Peter didn’t actually see Tony that way, maybe the name had just slipped out, unbidden. In which case… Tony had just admitted to being okay with Peter calling him dad, with  _ being  _ Peter’s dad--

“Or anything else!” Tony adds on hurriedly, heart pounding in his throat, “You can really call me anything-- I mean, nothing inappropriate, and I’m not a huge fan of the formalities, but you know that--”

“You want me to call you dad?”

_ Yes.  _ “Um,” Tony halts, “I… look. I’m not trying to replace anyone, Pete, I know I’m not really your dad--”

“But you don’t, like, not like the idea of being my dad?” Peter’s fingers twist his sweater sleeve. “Like, if I… if I wanted you to be. You would be fine with it?” He sounds heart-achingly hopeful.

Okay, maybe Tony hadn’t misinterpreted the conversation so badly. Relief washes over him, the traces of disappointment in his stomach extinguished. 

“Like I said, kid, you can call me whatever you want.” 

It’s not enough, and Tony knows it when Peter crosses his arms and looks him in the eye. “That’s not an answer.” he looks almost accusatory. “You won’t even say the word dad. Don’t-- don’t  _ lie _ to me about this.” His voice cracks a little part way through, and Tony winces internally as Peter pulls away from his touch. His arm falls back to his side like dead weight.

“Peter,” he tries, “Come on. We-- I-- we’ve already... ” Every excuse Tony can think of sounds sub-par. The situation is seconds away from collapsing and Peter’s face holds a strange mix of irritation, embarrassment, and something deeper that makes Tony’s chest ache. Maybe that’s what does it.

“ _ Yes,  _ Peter, of course I’m fine with it. More than, actually.” Tony clears his throat, carefully monitoring Peter’s expression. “Look, I’m not  _ good  _ at this, you know that. But you’re...” 

Shit. Why was Peter making him do this? He can’t do this. But if he  _ doesn’t  _ do this, then Peter will think that he doesn’t want to be his dad, and that’s worse. So much worse, and so,  _ so  _ far from the truth. 

“You’re my kid, okay?” And then, because Peter is looking away and blinking rapidly, and Tony  _ knows  _ that’s not what he needed to hear, “You’re like… you’re like my son, Peter.” 

And maybe Tony’s cheeks burn in badly hidden embarrassment, but Peter lunges at Tony and wraps himself into his hold all the same. Peter’s grip is tight, almost desperate, and Tony cradles the back of his head in one hand and brings the other arm around his back. 

“Peter--”

“Mr. Stark _. _ ”

Tony’s face twists, but he sets his confusion aside for the time being. “Hey, Underoos. Can you-- tell me what’s going on, what do you need--”

“ _ Dad. _ ” 

Tony practically melts. “Yeah, I’m here, Roo.”

“...Really? You’re sure?”

“How many times do I have to say it, kiddo? Yes.  _ Yes. _ ” Tony steps back and grasps Peter’s shoulders. “Look, is May going to be okay with this? I know she doesn’t really-- like me, but--”

“She doesn’t mind you that much, Mr. Stark.” Peter blinks. “I mean, um--”

He looks flustered, and Tony feels an amused smile twitch at his lips. “Pete, I meant it when I said you can call me whatever you’d like. If you want to switch between Mr. Stark and Tony and… dad, that’s fine. I’m still… that doesn’t change anything.” He pauses. “Just, one thing, though.”

Peter glanced up. “Yeah?” 

“Don’t call me sir anymore, okay?” Tony’s tone is clipped and closed off, but the panic he’d always felt at the prospect of being a father is starting to set in. 

_ (“Dad, I wasn’t--” _

_ “Sir.” _

_ “Sir,” Tony corrected, doing his best not to flinch away when Howard stepped closer,  _ _  
_ _ “Sir, they attacked me. I didn’t-- I-- I was just trying--” _

_ “Don’t  _ stutter _.” _

_ Tony glanced away, forcing the tears in his eyes to recede as Howard’s hand gripped his face harshly, forcing him to make eye contact.) _

“Okay, yeah, I won’t,” Peter’s saying, and Tony forces himself back into the present. “And um… Dad?”

Tony feels his gaze soften into a smile. “Yeah?”

“I think May will be fine. With this, I mean. She…” Peter bites his lip, “She wants what’s best for me. It might be, like, a bit of a shock though. I haven’t really told her about this yet.”

“We’ve only just had this conversation, Peter, of course you haven’t.”

A light blush dusts Peter’s cheeks. “Well, yeah, but… I kind of… I mean, I’ve sort of been thinking of you as… as my dad for a bit.”

Peter rushes out the last bit and Tony barely catches it. “Oh?”

“Yeah,” Peter swallows, “It was… you know, after that argument we had. I felt bad about it at first, but, uh… you said that you kinda saw me like… that, so. I realized maybe it wasn’t so bad.” He takes a breath. “But then I still-- you know-- there’s a difference between sort-of father figure and actual  _ dad _ , um, and I wasn’t sure whether you wanted to be  _ that  _ to me, so then I just… decided I could think of you like that but I didn’t have to tell you. I know you’ve said before that you don’t really want kids.” He shrugs as if that piece of knowledge hasn’t been tormenting him for months.

Tony frowns, cursing his lack of tact. “I… never did, really.” 

Peter looks small and almost scared at the words, and Tony tugs back him into his chest, wrapping his arms around him securely.  _ I want you, I love you, you’re safe. _

“I thought I never wanted kids,” Tony starts again, “But maybe I just didn’t want to be my father. I loved him, but I hated being his son. I resented him, and I… never wanted a kid to feel like that about me. And maybe I was just afraid of the responsibility,” he adds on as an afterthought, and he feels Peter smile into his shirt. He glances down. “But you don’t resent me.”

“‘Course not.” Peter replies easily, readily, “I love you. I mean… you said you love your dad, too, but I… I  _ like  _ you, so much, and I wouldn’t want you to be anyone else.”

Tony’s eyes sting. “Shit, kid, give me some warning before you go all mushy on me.” He clears his throat, “But, ah. Listen. I’m your… dad, and I want to be, okay?” He’s sure that Peter can feel the nerves radiating off of him. 

Peter melts into his hold in response, tucking his face into the crook of Tony’s neck. “Okay,” he responds simply. Tony relaxes too. He holds on a second longer, letting himself enjoy the close contact that had grown so natural to him around Peter.

Then he pulls back, clapping Peter on the shoulder and turning them back towards their work space. “So, Tony Stark is your dad now.” he chances a glance over at Peter, “Probably not how you expected any of this to go?”

Peter snorted. “Yeah, and that’s not even the craziest thing that’s happened to me.” At Tony’s look, he elaborates. “Sorry, but getting bitten by a radioactive spider and being able to stick to walls is way weirder.”

“This is cooler, though.” Tony maintains, grabbing a screwdriver and waving DUM-E over. 

“Sure, Tony,” Peter agrees indulgently, but then-- “Whatever makes you feel good, I guess.”

Tony glares. “Where’d you get that attitude from, huh?”

“Um…” Peter pretends to think, “Mr. Rhodey, I think.”

“ _ Excuse me? _ ”

Peter laughs, and Tony has a hard time pretending to be offended. 

“Peter?” 

“Yeah, dad?”

Tony just lets himself say what he’s feeling. “I love you, kid. So much.”

The look Peter gives him is one of pure adoration. 

**Author's Note:**

> Gonna be honest, I wrote this at 2am last night and it's incredibly indulgent, I know. I feel like the characterization is kinda off? But also kind of not?? It's okay, maybe? Someone help me out, please. I need opinions.  
> Also, the tenses are weird. I wrote this in present tense, I guess? I usually write stories in past tense but it sounded weird that way. So. Thoughts?  
> I was kinda surprised that I wanted to write this because usually I prefer Peter calling Tony 'Mr. Stark' or 'Tony', despite seeing him as his father. But for this one I just went ahead with my idea, and... yeah. I have some ideas for follow-ups where Peter calls Tony 'dad', but he'll still call him Tony & Mr. Stark too, I think.  
> Thanks so much for reading! If you liked the story, please leave kudos and comments, they make my day! (except for that one time someone told me to go fuck myself. That was less than optimal.)


End file.
